New Series: Theme Park Nation
I have worked in the theme park industry for many years, and now I want to share my insights into the world's best theme park nation, Japan
Imagine a world without theme parks: No rollercoasters roaring through loops that make you feel that tickling sensation you can't get from anywhere else.
No merry-go-rounds spinning beneath those warm, nostalgic lights that make your kids shut up for a second so you can relax and scroll your Tiktok feed in peace…. and absolutely no churros dusting your shirt with sugar you’ll still find weeks later.
We’d have fewer childhood memories to cling onto and more space for existential dread to creep into our daily routines. Maybe we'd even have to confront our real-life problems instead of hiding from them behind overpriced Mickey ears and buttery popcorn.
Theme parks matter precisely because they give us permission to escape reality without guilt, turning mundane days into something memorable, joyful, even magical.
And nowhere makes this clearer than Japan, a country that’s perfected escapism into an art form, proving how badly we all need a break from real life every now and then.
Japan isn't merely home to a few impressive theme parks; it's the global epicenter of themed entertainment. The country draws in over 50 million visitors annually for their theme parks alone, making it second only to the United States!
That's why I've decided to create "Theme Park Nation," a series diving deep into Japan’s most incredible theme parks, exploring how they became such marvelously insane experiences, and most importantly, examining whether the companies behind them make compelling investment cases.
Join me as we uncover the secrets, innovations, and quirky economics driving Japan’s extraordinary world of theme parks.